This is a declaration against racial discrimination. I can’t breathe, I can’t breathe! It is the cry not only of George Floyd, who cried out for help before he died, but of millions of people around the world who are experiencing racial discrimination. Those are also the final words of Eric Garner and of others who have died at the hands of racial discrimination.
How can we explain that in the 21st century, we are still fighting against racial discrimination in our society? How is it possible that there is still so much racism after so many articles, videos, and conversations about how this affects human beings?
How is it possible that we have not found a solution to a problem as degrading as this yet? Could it be that someday we will have an answer to the agonizing cry of those who are victims of racial discrimination?
Racial discrimination through time
No answer can calm the voice of those who suffer. I think the same commitment this country made to put a man on the moon in the 1960s, when the civil rights movement was at its peak, must be made to eradicate inequality. In 1980, the World Health Organization declared smallpox eradicated.
It became a reality thanks to the joint effort of experts from all around the world. If humanity has joined together to achieve great things and has strived to eradicate destructive diseases such as smallpox, how is it possible that the chronic disease of racism, which affects millions of people around the world, has not yet been eradicated?
Raise the voice against racial discrimination
In this post, I do not intend to minimize the answers to complex questions like these, but I do want to raise my voice and try to bring solutions to a problem that does not seem to end. A well-known principle of problem solving says that we should spend more time defining the problem than rushing to solutions.
The real lesson of that approach is that we must make sure we have properly and fully defined the problem, and spend less time grabbing for quick fixes.
First-order and second-order changes
One of the latent problems that our society is experiencing is that the changes people have tried to apply to eradicate racial discrimination as a chronic disease have been first-order changes. In systemic therapy, there are two types of changes: first-order changes and second-order changes.
The first-order change
A first-order change is an adaptive change in which the characteristics of a system change, but its fundamental nature remains the same. In a second-order change, a fundamental change is experienced and the nature of the system is significantly altered. The first-order changes to eradicate racial discrimination have been things like:
- better working conditions,
- more government programs for minorities,
- more protests on the streets to demand justice,
- and changes in knowledge about existing racism.
All these first-order changes are important and necessary, but by themselves they have not brought the change demanded by the voices of men and women who say “I can’t breathe” daily.
If we want lasting change, we must also pursue second-order changes, changes that shake the foundations of our beliefs and perspectives on life. We need to see changes in people’s attitudes and changes in the worldview of human beings.
If we want to have a different society, the second-order changes we must see have to begin at home. Much prejudice is learned at home, so much of the unlearning has to begin at home too. Laws, protests, and votes matter, but by themselves they work at the level of first-order change.
The second-order changes
Prejudice is usually learned. A child may hear comments from parents or relatives about people of another race, see the lines that divide people, and later pick up mockery, sarcasm, and contemptuous comments from friends at school. All of this shapes the character a person develops, and it can feed attitudes that harm others.
In many families, these beliefs have been passed down for generations, and someone has to dare to break that pattern of inequality and injustice that wounds so many children.
If you join me in seeking second-order changes, we must talk about parents who teach their children that we are all members of one family, the family of God. We have the same Creator who created us all equally. We all carry the same blood. Besides, we must see families welcoming people with cultural or ethnic differences, which allows us to break barriers of all kinds of inequality.
Second-order changes begin in churches. Yes, conflict is the continuation of an unsolved problem. We must preach more about this matter. We need to teach more and confront injustice more.
Second-order changes begin in schools. Schools that do not tolerate inequality, schools that look at all students equally and do not discriminate against the minority. I am talking about changes in people’s hearts, not just saying it.
Jesus and second-order changes
Jesus exemplified these second-order changes when he sat down to talk to the Samaritan woman (John 4:1-42). He broke the paradigms that existed in his society regarding this ethnic group. He was not held back by what other people might say. He simply challenged existing beliefs about inequality. He joined those who say: “I can’t breathe.” The change that Jesus brought was so influential back in his day that many Samaritans believed in him. And his disciples learned to see marginalized people differently.
Readily, he healed Gentiles and praised their faith (Matthew 8:5-13; 15:22-28) and taught his church to do the same (Acts 10-11). The apostle Paul’s ministry was intended for the Gentiles. The inclusiveness of Jesus’ message is summed up in Galatians 3:28: “There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (NIV).
Teachings of the Bible
Sadly, many have distorted the teachings of the Bible to try to justify human fear and prejudice. The “curse of Ham” is considered by some as an excuse for hating people of African descent. Others insist that Jews were responsible for Jesus’ death and deserve to be scorned by us. Both views are false.
The Bible tells us that God’s judgment is not based on appearances, but on what is within a person (1 Samuel 16:7). And those who judge according to appearances do so with evil thoughts (James 2:4). Instead, we should treat each other with love (James 2:8), regardless of ethnicity (Acts 10:34-35) and social position (James 2:1-5). Christian love denies all prejudice, and the Bible condemns racism.
I challenge you to raise your voice. Join many who try to say “I can’t breathe” with tears in their eyes. In the same way that Abel’s blood cried out to God from the ground (Genesis 4:10), the acts of injustice and inequality continue to cry out before the throne of grace for justice and equity. One day, God will bring justice.
Thus, the question I am asking you is: whose side will you be on? Will you be on the side of those who broke the paradigms to join the voice of the marginalized ones? Or will you let yourself be carried along by indifference?
Raise your voice today and join those who say: “I can’t breathe”. We need to work together to eradicate all types of racism.
If racism or violence has left you carrying fear, anger, or pain, you do not have to carry it alone. Talking with a counselor or pastor can help.
What is one step you can take this week, in your home or in your church, to help unlearn prejudice?
Would you like to talk with a professional? Call (407) 559-7093 (Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Eastern) or find professional help here. For general questions that are not an emergency, write to drduany@zodugroup.com. Please do not send health information by email.
If you are in crisis or thinking about hurting yourself, do not wait. Call or text 988 (988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, 24 hours a day, free and confidential). If there is immediate danger, call 911.
This article is for education only. It does not offer diagnosis or personal advice, does not replace evaluation or treatment by a health professional, and reading it or writing to us through this site does not create a therapeutic or pastoral counseling relationship. This site is not an emergency service and is not monitored continuously: do not send health information through comments or public forms. The author is a licensed psychotherapist and pastor, and is part of ZODU.
Sources
- Galatians 3:28, New International Version (BibleGateway).
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